Joshuu 701-gô: Sasori

Directed by Shunya Ito

Starring: Meiko Kaji, Fumio Watanabe, Shinzo Hotta, Hideo Murota, Isao Natsuyagi, Yoko Mihara, Yumiko Katayama, Yayoi Watanabe, Hiroko Ogi

701 is the first part in Toei’s classic Female Prisoner Scorpion series based on the Manga by Tooru Shinohara. This and the sequel Jailhouse 41 are widely considered the absolute best in the genre. The original film also marked Shunya Ito’s (sometimes credited as Toshiya Ito) directorial debut. Ito directed two sequels for the film before leaving the series to the hands of Yasuharu Hasebe who directed one more instalment to the original series. All four films starred the glamorous Meiko Kaji.

After being cruelly set up and deceived by Sugimi (Natsuyagi Isao), a conniving and crooked detective she had whole-heartedly fallen in love with (and subsequently lost her virginity to...), Matsushima Nami's desire for revenge knows no bounds. Her failed attempt at stabbing Sugimi on the steps of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Headquarters results in her doing hard time in a female prison run by sadistic and horny male guards. To Sugimi's surprise, Matsushima refuses to testify against him and his connections to the mob, and now the sheer fact that she knows such secrets makes her a liability. So Sugimi and the Japanese mafia orchestrate a plan whereby Matsushima will succumb to an "accidental" death in prison. They enlist the help of Kagiri, another female inmate with ties to both Sugimi and the mafia, thus their formidable plan is quickly set in motion. Little do they realize, however, how hotly Matsushima's desire for revenge burns within her.